clarity flowers in Elk: "Your regular reminder that "the ric..."

Your regular reminder that "the rich" aren't people who earn large paychecks. They are people with capital that generates returns: investments, property, company shares. "High income earners" are not an intrinsic enemy of "the working class" – many of them are a member of it!

March 13, 2026 at 8:56:53 PM

a surgeon earning $400k with few investments living paycheck-to-paycheck (very possible if they have a sick parent with high healthcare costs or high childcare prices) has more in common with a food service worker than with Jeff Bezos, but the system is designed to make both workers forget that.

And noteworthily: a NYT opinions journalist who earns a $120k salary and another $200k on their investments and tenant rent absolutely _is_ part of the capitalist class and rich, even though their income is lower than the hypothetical surgeon's!

Replying to

struggling with this one, maybe its a UK-US difference?

The median salary in the UK is about £39k. That's $51k in US money.

British members of parliament get £91k. That's $120k in US money.

$400k is a fortune.

and a food service worker with "a very sick parent with high healthcare costs or high childcare prices" will be in much more st than the surgeon.

what am I missing?

$400k is a lot but someone who gets it through their work is a worker.

Someone who gets that much money through investments and assets is not.

The note about a sick family member feels like a bit of a red herring there although that could damage even that big of a salary.

The minimum salary in the UK is £22k for a full-time job. That's £29k.

So a surgeon work's 13x as hard as a service worker on minimum wage?

I see the point being made that workers are workers, but I think this is flawed. There's being paid for work and then there's being paid (wink wink) for work.

The idea of ensuring the difference between the highest paid and lowest paid in any organisation must not be more than 5x is an excellent idea. I think the UK Greens might do it

"So a surgeon work's 13x as hard as a service worker on minimum wage?" this is a misnomer. of course not. the salary gap is a deep injustice that needs fixing. but they both -work-. unlike someone who collects a nice sum just from the money sitting in their stocks.